Improvement in electrical burglar-alarms



WAL/TER.

Electrical Burglar Alarms.

Patented May 13. 1873.

AMI PHOTO UTIUEPAFH c m r. 3/555 wslq p/wrsss UNITED STATES PATENT GFFIGE;

HORACE E. WALTER, or BIOHFIELD SPRINGS, NEW YORK. 1

IMPROVEMENT lN ELECTRICAL BURGLAR-ALARMS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 138,965, dated May 13,1873; application filed December 10, 1872.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE E. WALTER, of Richfield Springs, in thecounty of Otsego and State of New York, have invented an Improvement inBurglar-Alarms, of which the following is a specification:

This invention is for giving an alarm in case of an attempt to enter abuilding by raising a window or opening a door, and the instrument mayalso be used in connection with safes, bank-vaults, 85c.

The instrument is to be located in some convenient place where it may beheard by the occupant of the premises, the watchman or police, and theconnections are made by wires with the doors or windows to be guarded.At these points the electric circuit, through the wires and instrument,is to be closed, and when a burglarious effort is made and the door orwindow moved, the circuit is broken. These devices, being well known, donot require further description.

My improvement consists in an electromagnet and weighted armature, incombination with a latch and stop mechanism for a clockmovement, wherebythe clockfmovement will be liberated to strike a bell and give an alarmwhen the circuit is broken, and any subsequent closing of the window ordoor will not stop the alarm. I combine with this mechanism a stop thatcan be operated by hand, and a second stop operated by a time-piece,that prevents an alarm being given after a given hour has arrived, thuspreventing an alarm being given when the house or store is opened in themorning.

In the drawing, Figure 1 is an elevation of the apparatus with portionsof the case removed, to show the operative parts, and Fig. 2 is a planbelow the line :r 00.

The case a contains a clock-movement with the time and striking trainsof any usual character, but they are disconnected so that the hours arenot struck upon the bell c. The lever-stop d arrests the movement of thestriking-train by coming into contact with the fly e, or one of thewheels in the train, and at the lower end of the lover (I is a slidinglatch-plate e supported by the ledge or shelf f. The electromagnet g isin the circuit extending from the battery to the windows or doors to beguarded,

and the binding-screws h h receive these wires, and they pass at oneside through the switch k, by which the circuit can be broken, thencethey go to the electro-magnet; but for convenience of connection thesprings l 1 upon the back m of the case bear upon the circuit-studs 2 2,so that the clock-movement can be taken out by removing the back, andthereby access will be given to all parts of the instrument; and whenthe back is replaced the electrical connections are completed by thesprings I that press upon the studs 2. The armature n swings upon theaxis 3, and is provided with a weight, 0, that draws the armature backwhen the circuit is broken through the magnet g. An arm, 1', extendingup from the armature with an indicating end, 5, behind an opening in thedial, serves to show by inspection whether the circuit is open orclosed. Upon the arm 1 is a hook, c, that catches into thelatch-plate chence when the circuit is closed through g the armature is retainedtoward the electro-magnet, and the strikingmechdrawing upon thelatch-plate and lever to liberate the clock-movement and allow it tostrike the bell, and it will continue to strike until stopped by othermeans, or nntil'the spring runs down, because the recharging of themagnet g and the movement of the armature do not replace the stop 61,but the latch 0) slides upon the latch-plate c. When the instrument isto be disconnected to prevent the alarm operating, or to stop saidalarm, the slide 6 is drawn back, its arm 7 replaces the stop d, and bythe link 8 and lifter 9 the latch c is raised out of contact with thelatch-plate 0. Upon the hour-hand wheel of the clock a pin, 10, isplaced, and this operates-upon the sliderod 11 and lifter to raise thelatch v out of the latch-plate 6; hence the latch n will be lifted everytwelve hours and held up a short time, say an hour or more 5 thereby thealarm mechanism will not be operative during that time, and theapparatus can be thrown out of action by sliding the stop I) andconnected parts. I

This burglar-alarm is very cheap and simple; it is not liableto get outof repair; if the battery fails or the connections are injured,

the alarm ringsfthere is but little attention.

needed; the instrument can be placed in a conspicuous place and inclosedso that it ca nnot be tampered with, and hence is very reliable,especially in country places, where police or Watchmen are not employed.

This instrument may be provided with the mechanism only between themagnet and the clock-work, thereby dispensing with the slide 6 and itsparts, or the rod 11 to the clock-work, or both.

I claim as my invention- 1. The weighted armature n and electromagnet g,in combination with the hook o, latch-plate e, and stop d, to thealarm-clock movement, substantially as set forth.

2. The slide 6, arm 7, link 8, and lifter 9, in combination with thelatch 11 0, stop ,d, electromagnet, and alarm-clock mechanism, substan-lHORACE E. WALTER.

Witnesses:

Gno. T. PINCKNEY, Guns. H. SMITH.

